The increasing demand for data centers highlights the critical need for a robust physical security framework. Strategic management of data—vital to both commercial and non-commercial entities—requires stringent protection measures.
In addition, national and regional directives increasingly mandate secure data handling, with failures potentially leading to severe financial repercussions. According to IBM’s 2025 annual report, the average data breach cost is anticipated to reach 3.8 million EUR, underscoring the urgent need for optimal data security solutions.
Scalable Access Management for Enhanced Security
Given the diverse access requirements of staff, contractors, and visitors, effective physical security hinges on adaptable and scalable access management systems. These systems are essential for implementing strict access policies to prevent credential misuse.
A sophisticated security management system enhances data center resilience and operational efficiency
Ensuring seamless integration across multiple security layers is crucial, allowing for comprehensive event logging and traceability. Such integration with HR and visitor management systems guarantees that access rights reflect current staff status. Remote and real-time monitoring further fortify these security measures.
The data center’s ultimate mission is to prevent unauthorized access while maintaining a comprehensive audit trail that meets standards like ISO 27001 and NIS2. A sophisticated security management system enhances data center resilience and operational efficiency, protecting against hybrid physical and cyber threats.
Introducing KentixONE: A Comprehensive Security Platform
KentixONE, the latest addition to ASSA ABLOY’s suite of digital solutions, was specifically designed for data center environments. “It performs eight critical security tasks within its one intuitive, integrated platform,” states Joachim Mahlstedt, Managing Director at Kentix GmbH, part of ASSA ABLOY. This platform offers an integrated approach to data center security, consolidating access control, intrusion detection, video surveillance, and more under a single, user-friendly interface.
By bridging physical infrastructure and IT operations, KentixONE enhances security through integration with data center infrastructure management (DCIM) and ticketing systems. It maintains control over sensitive data while providing granular access management, audit trails, and real-time alerts. At the rack level, the platform integrates cabinet access control, intelligent PDUs, and environment sensors to manage permissions and monitor energy usage effectively. It is built to scale from small technical rooms to extensive multi-site estates, aligning with growing infrastructure needs without increasing complexity.
Advanced Monitoring and Fire Prevention
This comprehensive monitoring addresses more than 40 potential physical risk factors
KentixONE’s fire detection technology offers early warning capabilities, surpassing traditional smoke-based systems. It leverages thermal imaging, gas detection, and environmental data to preemptively identify fire risks, particularly valuable in high-density computing areas and battery-powered setups.
This comprehensive monitoring addresses more than 40 potential physical risk factors, ensuring data center operators can manage unauthorized entries, environmental changes, and power irregularities efficiently. User-friendly dashboards and mobile app accessibility provide security managers with crucial oversight.
Versatile Solutions for Varied Settings
KentixONE’s flexibility is evident through its adoption across diverse environments, including a co-location facility in Heidelberg, on-premise installations for major utilities, and providers of modular, container-based solutions.
“According to many of our customers, KentixONE makes significant operational cost savings when measured against traditional siloed solutions,” Mahlstedt explains. This platform’s adaptability and cost-effectiveness offer clear advantages for data center managers seeking efficient security solutions tailored to their unique requirements.
Demand for data centers is growing at a remarkable rate. Data’s strategic importance, for both commercial and non-commercial organizations, makes physical security fundamental at these sites. In addition, national and regional regulations place ever more stringent requirements on in-house and co-location operators to take a secure approach to data management and protection.
Data’s sensitive nature also brings data centers within the scope of the EU’s NIS2 and Cyber Resilience Act1. Penalties may be severe for organizations which get data security wrong: the projected cost of an average data breach is 3.8m EUR, according to IBM’s 2025 annual report2. The penalty in terms of reputation and/or regulator fines could be even more.
Scalable access management
Because staff, contractors and visitors all require varying levels of access at different times, physical security depends on flexible, scalable access management. Systems must enforce strict, least-privilege access policies and prevent the misuse of credentials. Multiple layers must work together seamlessly, with every event logged and traceable. Integration between security, HR, and visitor management systems can ensure access rights stay current as people join or leave projects. Remote and real-time oversight are essential.
The goal is not only to prevent unauthorized access. Data centers aim to maintain a clear audit trail which satisfies ISO 27001, NIS2 and other standards. Intelligent security management underpins the data center’s resilience and operational efficiency – deterring hybrid physical & cyber-attacks in the process, for example.
Portfolio of digital solutions
“As a powerful new addition to our stable of digital solutions, the KentixONE platform was designed specifically from the ground up for the white space of data centers,” explains Jochaim Mahlstedt, Managing Director at Kentix GmbH, part of ASSA ABLOY. “It performs eight critical security tasks within its one intuitive, integrated platform. With KentixONE, we can equip data center white space with the security and monitoring capacity it needs – now and well into the future.”
A recent addition to ASSA ABLOY’s portfolio of digital solutions, KentixONE is an integrated platform for physical security and critical monitoring. This unique solution combines 8 different data center functions within one system, all accessible from a single, unified interface:
- access control
- intrusion detection
- video surveillance
- external fault report
- early fire detection
- environment monitoring
- power monitoring
- network monitoring
Granular access management
KentixONE strengthens data security by creating a direct link between physical infrastructure and IT operations: it supports seamless integration with data center infrastructure management (DCIM), ticketing systems, and EAC solutions. It can keep sensitive operational data under local control while enabling granular access management, full audit trails, and real-time alerts.
At rack level, integrated cabinet access control, intelligent PDUs, and environment sensors allow operators to set temporary permissions, track interventions, and monitor energy usage by rack. Its integrated functionality and approach to risk management across multiple potential factors also helps a data center to achieve important security certifications EN 50600 and ISO 22237. The platform is designed to scale from small technical rooms to multi-site data-center estates, helping an organization’s infrastructure to grow, evolve, or become more geographically spread without adding complexity.
Correlating thermal imaging
KentixONE’s early fire detection monitoring capability – before a fire breaks out – goes beyond conventional smoke-based systems by correlating thermal imaging, gas detection, temperature trends, and air-quality data to identify risks much earlier.
This is especially important in high-density computer environments and battery-powered infrastructure where traditional alarms often activate too late to be effective. Indeed, KentixONE offers real-time overview for more than 40 potential physical risk factors, from unauthorized entry and perimeter breaches to overheating, humidity changes, water leaks, and power anomalies. Everything the security manager needs is accessible on dashboards or via the convenient mobile app.
Container-based solutions
“According to many of our customers, KentixONE makes significant operational cost savings when measured against traditional siloed solutions,” adds Joachim Mahlstedt. “This also helps to explain why its wide adoption in a range of settings, including a co-location facility in Heidelberg, an on-premise solution for a major utility, and for a provider of modular, container-based solutions. Its flexibility and cost-efficiency are a major plus for data center managers.”
“Data centers deserve a digital security management solution built entirely with their needs in mind,” he adds. “Now they can have it.”
